Even the Wealthy Scratch Lottery Tickets... Lottery Spending in the Highest Income Quintile Increases by 45%

High-Income Earners Join Lottery Purchases Amid Soaring Housing Prices
Income Quartile 4 Also Sees 33.1% Increase

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] High-income groups are also joining the lottery market, which is seen as a 'get-rich-quick' scheme. This is interpreted as a result of rising asset prices, such as real estate, becoming too high to be covered by income, leading to increased interest in purchasing lottery tickets.

According to data on 'Average Monthly Lottery Expenditure per Household by Income Quintile by Year' received on the 6th from the Ministry of Economy and Finance's Lottery Commission by Yang Kyungsuk of the Democratic Party of Korea, the top 20% income group, the 5th quintile, purchased 632 won worth of lottery tickets per household last year, a 45.0% increase compared to the previous year. The 5th quintile's lottery purchases increased to 599 won in 2018, dropped significantly in 2019, but rose again during the COVID-19 pandemic. The 4th quintile, representing the lower 40% income group, purchased 723 won worth of lottery tickets per household last year, a 33.1% increase from the previous year.

The increase in lottery purchases by the 4th and 5th quintiles is analyzed to be influenced by the rise in prices of real assets such as real estate. According to KB Housing Price Trends, the nationwide apartment sale prices rose by 9.65% at the end of last year compared to the previous year.

Professor Kim Sangbong of the Department of Economics at Hansung University said, "Even the top 2% income group who must pay comprehensive real estate tax find it difficult to secure a house in Seoul, so it must be even harder for the rest. Even those in the 5th quintile are not free from the burdens of economic downturn and rising house prices, so it seems natural that lottery purchases have increased."

According to the Lottery Commission, annual lottery sales increased from 3.8857 trillion won in 2016 to 5.4151 trillion won last year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.